He didn’t take the job as president of Florida Gulf Coast University to dramatically change higher education in the state.

Michael Martin learned a long time ago, through his many administrative travels, that building an academic institution, one book or one brick at a time, takes time.

Instead, Martin took the FGCU job last year because he thought he could make a difference in small ways by listening, enlightening, getting people to view things similarly and connecting those people. Only then, he thought, could he continue the growth of the 20-year-old school one book, one brick at a time.

When Martin was named The News-Press Person to Watch for 2018, we told him he would be graded each quarter. Martin gets a B.

Martin, 71, has a rich education background, including as chancellor at Louisiana State University, a more established institution than FGCU. He didn’t need FGCU to fulfill some education legacy. He’s not building a career; he’s preparing to end one. He’s not worried about getting fired or taking risks. He wants to help the university continue to grow and, for now, is the right person for the job.

FGCU could have hired someone younger with the intention of leading the university over a much longer time period. That might have prevented the inevitable, which is another presidential search in possibly three or four years when Martin decides to retire.

Even for a short time, Martin gives the university someone who knows how to build relationships, especially with the state’s Board of Governors, which has been resistant in the past to improving the school’s funding levels.

Cultivating relationships also gave root to Martin’s biggest surprise since becoming FGCU’s president on July 1, 2017.

“The most amazing thing to me about the university is the degree and importance (of the school) to the community,” Martin said. “The community continues to take significant pride and ownership in the place. Every building has a name on it and that was before we had any alumni. That’s reflective of the enormous amount of interest. That gets me, not as Martin but as president of FGCU, invited to a lot of places.”

Those invitations have led to Martin fully engaging in the community. He serves on six boards, including Imagine Solutions, Southwest Florida Economic Development Alliance and Naples Botanical Garden.

Eye to future

Martin is getting ready to say goodbye to about 20 percent of faculty members, original teachers from when the university opened. He sees this as a way to welcome change to the school’s original vision.

Adopting new philosophies and strategies must include engaging with the Board of Governors and Florida Legislature to beef up funding levels to put FGCU on a level playing field with other regional universities in the state. It is a challenge for Martin.

This past legislative session kept with tradition, but Martin saw some positive movement. FGCU originally asked the Legislature for about $63 million for various projects and programs, including new buildings. The school got $14 million. Martin was ecstatic; he didn’t expect that much.

The mass school shooting in Parkland and the tragic bridge collapse at Florida International University resulted in Martin and staff reviewing school safety and contract guidelines, as well as creative ways to funnel more money to safety programs.

FGCU has certain recurring funds used to replace faculty. But because those positions may not need to be filled for several months, Martin can use existing funds to put in more security cameras or other safety technologies.

The News-Press and Daily News are part of the USA TODAY Network—Florida.